Floating, yawing spar current/tidal turbine

ABSTRACT

The present invention describes a floating yawing spar buoy current/tidal turbine. The spar includes a spreader above the rotor(s) with the spreader tips connected to fore and aft cable yokes that transition to opposing mooring lines connected to anchors on the seabed. The spreader comprises a yaw motor, which drives gears that engage with a ring gear fixed to the outer perimeter of the spar. Flow direction sensors activate the yaw motor for automatic yaw adjustments of the spar turbine. As tidal direction changes, the entire spar and turbine are yawed to maintain the rotor plane facing the tidal flow. The bottom end of the spar extends to approximately the bottom sweep of the rotor plane and contains a winched vertical mooring line, extending to the seabed and attached to a gravity or suction pile anchor. The turbine drive train can be accessed for servicing from the surface via hatches and ladders within the spar to enter the drive train and generating system vessel. The spar turbine is deployed by towing it in a horizontal position. At the operating site, the yokes are connected to the forward and aft mooring lines and the winch line is connected to the gravity anchor. The winch inside the keel draws the bottom end of the spar down and may be assisted by flooding the keel to reach a vertical position for the spar. The winch is then locked to retain required operating depth, or can actively control operating depth in areas of wide tide level range.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application is a continuation-in-part application of andclaims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/217,060, filedMar. 17, 2014, and entitled “Floating Tower Frame for Ocean CurrentTurbine System,” the entire disclosure of which is incorporated byreference herein.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of Invention

The present invention is directed to turbine systems for the generationof electrical power and/or the production of fresh water from oceantidal and/or current (gyre) flows, and more specifically, to a floating,yawing spar tidal turbine.

2. Description of Related Art

Ocean currents are a major, largely untapped energy resource. Thepotential for ocean current electric power generation in the UnitedStates is as much as 185 TWh/yr., comprising both tidal and gyrecurrents, which have the advantage of delivering clean, renewable,predictable power to the coastal transmission grid, which are usually inclose proximity to high load centers. Research and development in thisarea is driven by the need to generate electricity from renewable energyresources, particularly in view of the rising level of CO₂ and methanein the earth's atmosphere from the combustion of carbon fuels and theresulting disruptive impact on climate from global warming.

An ocean current is a continuous, directed movement of seawatergenerated by the forces acting upon this flow, such as breaking waves,wind, Coriolis effect, evaporation, temperature, salinity differences,and tides caused by the gravitational pull of the Moon and the Sun.Depth contours, shoreline configurations and interaction with othercurrents influence a current's direction and strength. Ocean gyrecurrents are relatively constant and near our coastlines, generally flowin one direction, in contrast to periodic tidal currents that reverse inflow direction due to gravitational forces. Harnessing a slow movingfluid to generate power has been effectively accomplished with windturbines. While ocean currents move slowly relative to typical windspeeds, they carry a great deal more energy because of the density ofwater, which is more than 800 times that of air. The following tableillustrates the average electrical power density as a function of windor current flow speeds for a wind turbine or marine turbine,respectively.

Wind Turbine Marine Turbine Average Wind Speed Average Power AverageFlow Speed Average Power (typical range - m/s) Density W/m² (typicalrange - m/s) Density W/m² 6.0 132 0.99 498 7.5 258 1.20 886 8.5 376 1.431500 10.0 613 1.60 2101

With gyre currents, the constancy of flow also provides the opportunityfor steady electric power delivery, compared to the intermittency ofwind and solar. Because of these physical properties, ocean currentscontain an enormous amount of energy that can be captured and convertedto a usable form.

The United States, United Kingdom, Japan, and other countries arepursuing ocean current energy. Wind turbine technology is mature andgenerally adaptable to marine conditions, therefore the principalchallenge to economically harnessing currents has been with the turbineplatform topology and its station holding approach. For wide commercialdeployment, turbines must be easy to transport, install, haveaccessibility to the turbine power deck for operations and maintenance,and generate power with levelized cost of energy (LCOE) comparable towind turbines and photovoltaic systems.

For ocean current energy to be utilized successfully on a commercialscale, a number of engineering and technical challenges need to beaddressed, including: avoidance of blade cavitation (bubble formation);prevention of marine growth buildup; reliability (since at-seamaintenance costs are potentially high); efficient methods ofdeployment; corrosion resistance; and anchoring and mooring methods.System reliability is of particular importance, since the logistics ofat-sea maintenance is limited by accessibility, in windows of acceptableweather and sea-states, adding to the costs of maintenance services. Anysystem deployed in the ocean must be able to survive extreme waves andstorms, which raises the capital cost and maintenance, and have minimalimpact on the marine environment, such as fishing grounds, beachshoreline, and be compatible with ocean navigation.

Korean Patent No. 936907 to Kim discloses an ocean floor mounted, tworotor tidal electrical power generating system in which a main bodyautomatically rotates so that a rotor always faces the tidal flow. Thissystem is expensive due to the structural requirements necessary toresist the overturning moment of the whole structure due to the thrustload of the current on the rotors. This limits deployment to shallowlocations. Installation is costly, since it is only possible to performduring short periods of time between tidal flows. This permanent type ofinstallation makes it challenging to return the structure to the shorebase facility for long-term servicing. Servicing just one rotor resultsin raising all the rotors above the surface and shutting down bothrotors (not just the one requiring servicing) of the system resulting insignificant loss of power production. Moreover, both rotors, even whenin prime workable condition, must operate simultaneously since ashutdown of one rotor would turn the rotor support structure towardoblique alignment with the flow rather than squarely facing the flow,significantly reducing power production.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,307,356 to Fraenkel discloses a dual rotor marinecurrent turbine mounted on the ocean floor. This system is alsoexpensive due to structural requirements to deal with the overturning ofthe whole structure resulting from thrust load of the current on therotors. Also, installation and securing to the ocean floor is onlypossible during short periods of time between tidal flows. Rotors andsupport structure can be raised for servicing, however all powergeneration is shut down if only one rotor requires servicing. Rotors andtheir support structure do not yaw. Rather, the blades reverse directionfor change in tidal flow direction. This means that the rotors are notsquarely facing the flow when the flow in one direction is a littledifferent than the flow in the opposing direction resulting in reducedpower production.

Great Britain Patent No. 2,447,774 to Fraenkel discloses a deep watercurrent dual turbine system anchored to an ocean floor. If one rotormalfunctions, requiring servicing, the entire system must be shut downand brought to the surface. In a tidal flow, this would be difficult, asthe flow in one direction drops off and waters calm, only a brief windowin time is available for servicing operations before the flow reverses,at which point the whole anchored structure must swing around to anopposite position on the surface due to the opposite flow direction.There is no surface accessibility to the turbine drivetrains forservicing. This design appears costly, complex, and problematic toservice. This design is based on the rotors downstream of the spar andyawing of the rotors to face the flow downstream of the spar. When thetide flow changes yawing is delayed until the flow is sufficientlystrong, to drag the non-operating rotors around to a downstreamposition. The loss of one turbine operating will cause the balance ofthe turbines to yaw away from squarely facing the flow, significantlyreducing the power generated by the whole system. This results in lostproduction and poor equipment utilization.

In summary, known prior art systems are not capable of producingcost-effective, utility-scale electrical power output to meet modernenergy needs. What is needed is a system for efficiently capturing powerfrom ocean or tidal currents, to generate electric power or producedesalinated water, which is cost effective to manufacture, deploy, andmaintain.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention overcomes these and other deficiencies of theprior art by providing a novel floating, yawing spar platform for aturbine generating system. The yawing, spar platform includes a spreaderlocated above the rotor with the tips of the spreader serving asconnections points, for the fore and aft cable yokes, which transitionto fore and aft mooring lines connected to anchors on the seabed. Thespreader contains one or more yaw motors driving gears, which engagewith a ring gear on the outer perimeter of the spar. As tidal directionchanges the spreader is held in a fixed position by the mooring linesand yokes. The entire spar and turbine are yawed against the fixedspreader to maintain the rotor plane facing the tidal flow. Flowdirection sensors on the platform activate the yaw motor for automaticyaw adjustments to flow direction. The bottom end (“the keel”) of thespar extends to approximately the bottom sweep of the rotor plane andcontains a winched vertical mooring line, extending to the seabed andattached to a gravity or suction pile anchor. The turbine drive traindeck can be accessed from the surface deck, via hatches and ladderswithin the spar. Deployment is performed by towing the spar turbine in ahorizontal position by the winch mooring line and the spreader yokecables. At the operating site, the yokes are connected to the forwardand aft mooring lines and the winch line is connected to a gravityanchor. The winch inside the keel draws the bottom end of the spar downand may be assisted by flooding ballast tanks in the keel to reach avertical position for the spar. The winch is then locked to retainrequired operating depth, or can be used to actively control operatingdepth in areas of wide tide level range.

In an embodiment of the invention, a current or tidal turbine comprises:a floating spar buoy including a keel at a bottom end; a spreaderdisposed on the spar, wherein the spreader comprises connection pointsfor attaching one or more mooring lines connected to one or moreanchors; the spreader may further comprise a yaw motor to react thespreader against the spar to effect yawing, and turbine and its powergenerating system disposed in a vessel integrated with the spar forconverting current or tidal flow into electricity. A current or tidalflow direction sensor activates the yaw motor in response to a change incurrent or tidal flow direction. The spar may include a plurality ofrotors within a rotor plane and the yaw motor rotates the floating sparabout a vertical axis to maintain the rotor plane facing the current ortidal flow direction. The keel extends to the bottom of the rotor sweepand downstream of the operating rotor plane, and may comprise a winchattached to a vertical mooring line. The keel avoids any entanglement bythe rotor with the vertical mooring line. The keel may further include aballast tank. The spar buoy platform floats in a horizontal plane duringtowing to an operating site. Flooding of the ballast tank and activationof the winch draws the keel down and rotates the yawing spar platforminto a vertical position. The operating depth from the ocean surface ofthe current or tidal turbine rotor is adjusted through the winch andhelps maintain the rotor plane in a vertical position when under thethrust load of the current. The floating spar includes a hatch on thetop deck above the waterline and internal ladders to permit servicemanaccess to the drivetrain, the electrical equipment, and the controls ofthe turbine.

In another embodiment of the invention, a current or tidal turbinecomprises: a cylindrical floating spar, a turbine and drivetrain/powergenerating system within a vessel integrated with the cylindricalfloating spar, a sensor for sensing a direction of water flow across thecylindrical floating spar, a spreader on the spar above the rotor, and ayaw motor fixed to the spreader to position the turbine in the senseddirection of water flow. In operation of the turbine, the cylindricalfloating spar floats vertically with its top approximately ten to twentypercent (10-20%) above the water line and its bottom approximatelyeighty to ninety percent (80-90%) below the water line. The center ofgravity of the current or tidal turbine is located below its center ofbuoyancy. A winch is located at a bottom end of the spar within the keeland is attached to a mooring line extending to the seabed. The spreaderstructure lateral ends are fixed to fore and aft cable yokes. The foreand aft cable yokes connect to mooring lines with anchors on the seabed.The spreader houses the yaw motor(s) and further comprises driving gearsengaging a ring gear on an outer perimeter of the spar. The platform hasa current flow direction sensor to activate the spar yawing system. Theturbine rotor comprises variable pitch blades, which can be activated toshed the force of the current speed in excess of the system's ratedpower and to feather the blades completely for a safe shutdown of themachine. The turbine is serviced by personnel through an entrance hatchon the spar above the water line and a decent on ladders internal to thespar and to the drivetrain deck.

This present invention has significant advantages over existing tidalcurrent turbines. First, currents are often relatively turbulent andflow faster closer toward the surface. Certain tidal turbines aremounted rigidly on the seabed and they are not able to operate in thehigher, more energetic flow speeds near the surface. Furthermore,rigidly mounted structures require greater structural margins, whichhave significantly higher costs. The yawing spar turbine platform of thepresent invention floats with a portion of the spar above the watersurface, but is resiliently stationed by mooring cables and cantherefore flex to mitigate higher loads from wave turbulence andunusually higher speeds in the flow. Second, the cost of seabed mountedturbines can be extremely high due to the massive structure andfoundation required, short windows of nil flow (still water) and thecomplexities and costs of underwater construction requiring specializedships and cranes. The spar turbine of the present invention utilizesconventional anchoring systems providing substantial cost savingscompared to seabed mounted. Third, the turbine of the present inventioncaptures more energy in the tidal flow by passively adjusting itsoperating depth by means of rotor drag. As the tides change direction,the flow slows and virtually stops, then the counter flow starts toincrease. With minimum flow the spar turbine is closer to the surface,since the rotor drag is less and the machine captures whatever energy isyielded in that flow. As the flow velocity increases, the rotor dragincreases, and the mooring to the seabed creates a downward force whichcauses the spar buoy to reach a depth where the downward force of themoored rotor drag equals the upward force of the platform buoyancy.Higher flow speed results in more rotor drag driving the buoyant spardeeper. In this manner, the turbine operates more of the time in itsdesign capacity range, than a turbine vertically fixed in the flow.Fourth, in certain prior art, a vessel on the surface rotates multiplearms with turbines, down below the surface to a vertical rotor operatingposition. Since this vessel operates on the surface this precludesadjusting the rotor depth to the current velocity for gains in turbinepower production. The surface vessel is also subjected to extreme forcesof high seas and turbulent wave action. The yawing spar turbine of thepresent invention has the special properties of a spar buoy where smallocean surface area is penetrated by the cylindrical spar structure,ideal for minimizing wave loading. The small surface area coupled withthe mass of the spar turbine results in minimal heave of the system andstresses on the structure in destructive wave environments, allowing fora lighter structure with lower costs.

The foregoing, and other features and advantages of the invention, willbe apparent from the following, more particular description of thepreferred embodiments of the invention, the accompanying drawings, andthe claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the present invention, the objectsand advantages thereof, reference is now made to the ensuingdescriptions taken in connection with the accompanying drawings brieflydescribed as follows.

FIG. 1 illustrates an ocean current turbine system according to anembodiment of the invention;

FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrates transportation and deployment of the oceancurrent turbine system of FIG. 1 to an operating site;

FIG. 3 illustrates a front view of the ocean current turbine system ofFIG. 1 in its operating position;

FIG. 4 illustrates a track and collar yaw (TRAKYAW) system attached to atower according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 5 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the TRAKYAW system of FIG.4;

FIG. 6 illustrates a turbine and tower yawing system according to anembodiment of the invention;

FIG. 7 illustrates a system for changing the azimuth orientation of theocean current turbine system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 illustrates three alternative embodiments of the wing of FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 illustrates a side view of the movement of a turbine systemaccording to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 10 illustrates an ocean current turbine system according to anotherembodiment of the invention;

FIG. 11 illustrates a turbine farm utilizing the ocean current turbinesystem of FIG. 1 according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 12 illustrates a yawing spar turbine according to an embodiment ofthe invention;

FIG. 13 illustrates exemplary 180 degree yawing of the spar and turbineas the spreader remains stationary;

FIG. 14 illustrates a gearing mechanism by which the spreader andturbine are rotated relative to the stationary spreader of the yawingspar turbine of FIG. 12;

FIG. 15 illustrates the yawing spar turbine interior decks and hatchesaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 16 illustrates deployment of the yawing spar turbine of FIG. 12according to an embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Preferred embodiments of the present invention and their advantages maybe understood by referring to FIGS. 1-16, wherein like referencenumerals refer to like elements. The present invention may be utilizedin any type of moving liquid, e.g., water flow, environment such as, butnot limited an ocean current environment or tidal current environment.Although the present invention is described in the context of electricalpower generation, it can also be used to provide high pressure seawaterfor reverse osmosis fresh water production.

FIG. 1 illustrates an ocean current turbine system 100 according to anembodiment of the invention. The ocean current turbine system 100comprises a plurality of current turbines 110A-E and respective floatingspar/towers 120A-E, each turbine 110 disposed on its own spar/tower 120.The spar/towers 120A-E are located (when in operation) between a topstructural connecting member 130 above the water line “WL” and a bottomstructural connecting member 140 below the water line. The topstructural connecting member 130 can be either a truss, a beam, or othersuitable structural element, the identification and implementation ofwhich is apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art, to joinspars/towers 120A-E together at one end. As shown, the top structuralconnecting member 130 is illustrated as a truss and therefore will bereferred to as such in the remaining description even though other typesof a structural connecting member may be used. The bottom structuralconnecting member 140 is a wing in a preferred embodiment. However, thebottom structural connecting member 140 can alternatively be a truss,beam, or other suitable structural element, the identification andimplementation of which is apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art,to join spars/towers 120A-E together at the opposite end. As shown, thebottom structural connecting member 140 is illustrated as a wing andtherefore will be referred to as such in the remaining description eventhough other types of a structural connecting member may be used. Thetowers 120A-E, truss 130, and wing 140 make a floating frame.

As shown, the system 100 includes five turbines 110A-E; however anynumber (greater than one) of turbines 110 with respective spar/towers120A-E may be implemented. In operation, the turbines 110A-E are locatedsubsurface near the base of the towers 120A-E and horizontal wing 140.This permits the center of gravity of the system 100 to be located inthe bottom one-third of the spar/towers 120A-E near the wing 140, whilethe center of buoyancy is located in the top third of the spar/towers120A-E below the water line and near the truss structure 130. When inoperating position, the entire system 100 floats vertically, withrespect to the spar/towers, and appears as a horizontal ladder floatingwith one side above the water surface. In an embodiment of theinvention, the turbines 110A-E and spar/towers 120A-E are modular, whichenables the system 100 to provide added turbine capacity by lengtheningthe truss 130 and the bottom wing 140. The turbines 110A-E may belocated at the same relative height along the towers 120A-E or atdifferent heights for added capacity per unit length of the frame.

As further discussed below, a turbine 110 may be moved coaxially up anddown a respective spar/tower 120 along a track 125 by a motorized gearon the turbine base engaging with a linear gear along the track.Alternatively, the turbine may be moved coaxially up and down thespar/tower by cables and pulleys. Still alternatively, worm gears,hydraulic pistons, or other means may also be used to drive a turbine110 along the track 125. The turbine track/drive is herein referred toas the elevator. The truss 130 may include an optional crane 160 thatcan move along the length of the truss 130 to raise and lower turbines110A-E, remove the rotor, and handle other components. Power generatedby the system 100 may be carried via a power cable 161 to an electricaltransfer station 170, the implementation of which is apparent to one ofordinary skill in the art.

In an embodiment of the invention, a turbine 110 may comprise fixedpitch blades or variable pitch blades. Blade spoilers may be optionallyimplemented to limit the amount of lift created by the blades. In analternative embodiment of the invention, one or more of the turbines120A-E may be located on a respective tower 120A-E downstream of thecurrent flow.

FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrates the transiting and deployment of thefloating tower frame ocean current turbine system 100 to an operatingsite. In towing (e.g., by a boat 210 via towing lines 215) to anoperating site as shown in FIG. 2A (viewed from above and looking downon the ocean), the system 100 is allowed to float flat on the oceansurface, to clear shallow areas such as those near a quayside or otherlittoral area. Once at the operating site as shown in FIG. 2B (which isa side view looking at the end of the system 100), upstream mooringlines (not shown) are attached. When ready for installation of the frameat the operating site, an electric motor and drive gear housed withinthe turbine base engages a linear gear along the track, thus, theturbine 110 and its base slides coaxially along the track. Themotor-gear arrangement drives the turbine on its base towards a collar220A-E, which is aligned to receive the turbine base from the spar/towertrack. As turbines 110A-E move along the respective track 125A-E, towardthe bottom end of the spar/tower 120A-E, the center of gravity of theentire frame shifts from the horizontal floating tower central position,used in transiting, to the lower end of the tower near the wing, causingthe lower end to sink thereby rotating the frame from horizontal tovertical. This rotation of the frame may be assisted by ballast tanks(not shown) inside the base of the spa/towers 120A-E and/or in the wing140, and which when flooded stabilizes the frame in its operationalvertical position. For long-term overhaul, this rotation process isreversed for towing the system 100 back to quayside. The system 100 ismoored to seabed anchor(s) with a number of mooring lines 150. Forexample, mooring lines 150 are disposed at each end of the truss 130 andwing 140 as shown. Optionally, mooring lines 150 may also be atintermittent points along the length of the truss and wing as the system100 is made longer to accommodate the thrust load of more spar/towersand turbines.

FIG. 3 illustrates a front view of the floating spar/tower frame oceancurrent turbine system 100 in its operating position. Each turbine110A-E and the connected turbine base moves along the track and collaryaw (TRAKYAW) system comprising tracks 125A-E and collars 220A-Eattached to the towers 120A-E. As shown in more detail in FIG. 4, aTRAKYAW system provides a means of turbine yawing, when in operation.The turbine 110 and its base 112 rides on the vertical track 125. Thetrack 125 provides a means of raising the turbine to the truss 130 abovethe ocean surface for servicing. Once servicing is completed, a turbine110 and its base 112 are lowered to the operating position. At thecollar 220, the turbine base 112 disengages the track 125 and engages acoupling arrangement similar to the track on the collar. In thisposition, the turbine 110 is able to yaw around the spar/tower 120 by acollar 220 around the spar/tower 120, on which it is connected. Theturbine 110 is coupled to the turbine base 112 via a bearing 114. In anembodiment of the invention, the tower 120 is laminated with lowfriction material such as teflon or low friction polymer coating onwhich the collar 220 rotates once it reaches its operating position.Other bearing methods may be used.

The TRAKYAW system of FIG. 4 comprises hydraulic actuators or electricyaw motors 410 attached to the collar 220. The gears 412 of the yawmotors 410 mesh with a sun gear 420 girdling and connected to thespar/tower 120. Activation of yaw motors 410 rotate the turbine 110 andcollar 220 against the sun gear 420 on the tower. In an embodiment ofthe invention, yaw motor activation is controlled by a current flowdirection sensor (not shown). A generator torque control sensor (notshown) may also activate the yaw motor 410. The turbine generator torquecontrol sensor can detect current flow speeds in excesses of thegenerator system capacity. The turbine controller is programmed toactivate the yaw system to reduce the rotor exposure to the flow, thuslimiting the rotor torque to the generating system to stay within itsrated loads. The following table presents the relationship between thepercentage rotor flow exposure and degrees the rotors are off-axis toflow direction.

Rotor Flow Degrees Off-Axis to Exposure Flow Direction 100%  0°  98% 10° 87% 20°  71% 45°

This method of torque control benefits from using the yaw system forboth yawing to squarely face the current to gain maximum current flowenergy capture, while also providing a means of shedding current energyin excesses of the turbine's rated capacity. This is particularlyimportant in tidal flows where the force of extreme flow speed must bemitigated to a productive and economic operation range for the turbine.Yawing “out of the flow” avoids variable pitch blades in a rotor proneto failures and high servicing requirements.

FIG. 5 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the TRAKYAW system. When inoperation, the collar 220 including its turbine 110 can be rotated oryawed about the tower 120 thereby positioning the rotor blades tosquarely face the current flow to optimize the power capture of thecurrent. In an embodiment of the invention, the collar 220 andrespective turbine 110 can rotate 350 degrees about the vertical axis ofthe tower 120. In most tidal currents yawing would be in the range of150° to 210°.

FIG. 6 illustrates the side view of a turbine and spar/tower yawingsystem 600 according to an embodiment of the invention. Here, theturbine yawing system 600 comprises a tower top connection to the truss130 by a rotatable bearing 620A and a bottom of the tower connection tothe wing 140 also by a rotatable bearing 620B. In this configurationthere is no collar, and in operation, the turbine 110 and its base, areat the lower end of the track 125. For yawing the spar/tower andturbine, a sun gear 630 girdling the spar/tower top is driven asrequired by a yaw motor 640 mounted on the bottom of the truss. In thisconfiguration the entire tower 120 and turbine 110 yaws for the rotor tosquarely face the flow. The track 125 also serves to access the turbine110 to the operations deck 350 for servicing.

The TRAKYAW system responds when the flow direction sensor detects adeviation in current direction. The system controller energizes the yawmotors 410 to make a turbine yaw position adjustment upstream of thespar/tower. The TRAKYAW system positions the rotor in the flow muchquicker than a passive yaw system, thereby generating power earlier, foroverall higher production. This is to be contrasted with a passive yawsystem which requires the forces of the flow to yaw the turbine 110,moving it to a downstream position (from the tower). Passive yawingwhere the rotor is downstream of its support structure can result indamaging cyclic loads, since the rotor blades experience substantialstream flow impedance (shadowing) from a spar/tower, twice on eachrevolution.

The preceding TRACKYAW description applies to ocean current turbinesoperating in tidal flow regimes with periodic flow reversal. In areaswhere the current usually flows in steady direction with no flowreversal, there may be times when the current meanders and azimuthadjustments in the range of ±20° for the rotors to face the current arerequired. Under these conditions, the 350° yawing of the individualturbines is not required and the yaw system function may be accomplishedby changing the azimuth orientation of the frame as shown in FIG. 7.Here, the floating spar/tower frame ocean current turbine system 100 isviewed from the top looking down onto the ocean surface. An azimuthorientation change is accomplished using the mooring lines 150 at eachend of the frame. Rather than being permanently secured to the frame,the mooring lines 150 are instead run across or looped over a winch 107,which is controlled to adjust the upstream and downstream mooring linelength to the frame, thus altering the heading of the frame. An optionalsecond winch 107 can be used on the opposite side of the frame. Thisazimuth positioning control by winching the mooring line(s) 150 providesan alternative method of facing the rotors squarely to the current flowwithout the need for a yaw system on each turbine.

Depth control of the current turbine system 100 is based on buoyancy ofthe towers 120A-E and hydrodynamic lift of the wing 140, offsetting thegravity force and downward force vector of the current creating drag onrotors and frame due to mooring to the ocean floor. The drag force fromthe current on the system 100, moored to the ocean floor has two forcevectors: a horizontal (drag) force and a downward force. The downwardforce is compensated by the added volumetric displacement as thesubmerged portion of the spars/towers 120 increases, along with thehydrodynamic lift of the wing 140, resulting from the current. Thegreater the flow speed, the greater the wing lift to offset the downwardforce component. This balance of upward and downward forces maintainsthe current turbine system 100 within the operating range of depth foroptimum performance.

FIG. 8 illustrates three alternative embodiments of the wing 140. Asshown in the bottom illustration, the wing 140 comprises a hydrodynamicefficient wing in a fixed pitch position connected to the base of thetowers 120A-E. This is preferable when operating in a current that flowswith no flow reversal (such as the Florida Gulf Stream). However, in atidal current, the wing 140 can be fitted to pitch actively orpassively. For example, as shown in the center illustration, the wing140 may vary its pitch relative to the spar/tower via anelectromechanical or hydraulic activation control mechanism 810 at thebase of the towers 120A-E. Here, the control mechanism 810 activelycontrols the pitch of the wing 140. As shown in the top illustration,the pitch of the wing 140 is passively adjusted via a pivot arm 820,where drag of the current over a drag plate pitches the wing into aposition to provide hydrodynamic lift. Adjusting the pitch of the wing140 provides hydrodynamic lift to the ocean current turbine system 100and compensates for the downward force vector induced by the currentdrag on the turbines and the frame moored to the ocean floor. One ofordinary skill in the art readily appreciates that the structure of awing 140 can be altered before deployment to change its hydrodynamicperformance.

The system 100 does not have a connection vessel floating on the surfacecreating unproductive drag across the current flow; rather, the turbinespar/towers 120A-E present the only ocean surface exposure, which due totheir small volumetric displacement in a passing wave and the distancebetween the towers 120A-E, the hogging and sagging loads become minimal.The current turbine system 100 is designed to avoid loads caused by waveaction. These specifically hogging and sagging loads of a surface vesselbeing lifted by a wave passing along its longitudinal center (hogging)or waves at each end of the wing resulting in reduced support at thecenter (sagging load). The current turbine system spar/towers extendingthrough the ocean surface provide minimum exposure to wave “slap” loads.

Current shear typically has the highest flow velocity at the surface,dropping to near zero at the ocean floor. A vessel floating on thesurface at a cross angle to the current would require massive mooringand anchoring capacity due to drag along the length of the vessel. Thisnot a problem with the current invention since the current turbinesystem 100 has only the spar/towers below the surface and the low dragwing 140 at the bottom of the spar/towers 120A-E. Therefore theprincipal drag of the system 100 is from the rotors thereby harnessingthe power in the flow and reducing the mooring and anchoring structuralrequirements.

In this reduced surface exposure design, the current turbine system 100requires far less structural material and can be made much largerproviding a cost competitive advantage. A major cost component of oceancurrent generating systems is the power cable to shore and the mooringand anchoring. Therefore it is advantageous to have more turbines persystem that can utilize the same mooring and anchoring, along with asingle power cable.

FIG. 9 illustrates the side view of a current turbine system 900according to another embodiment of the invention. The box trussstructure 130 spans the tops of the spars/towers 120 above the oceansurface and serves as a platform for service crews to board and maintainthe turbines 110. The bottom of the box truss 130 is the operations deck350 while its top serves as a track for the crane 160 to traverse thelength of the truss 130 for accessing the turbines 110. The combinationof the elevator TRAKYAW system 125 and the crane 160 enables eachturbine 110 to be serviced on the operations deck 350 of the truss 130under most weather and sea conditions. Power generation remainsuninterrupted for the rest of the turbines 110B-E while a particularturbine 110A is being serviced.

Located on the operations deck 350 of the truss 130 is an equipmentcabin 610 containing electric power conditioning equipment (not shown),This equipment cabin 610 may also contain a hydrostatic motor (notshown) to drive an electric generator (not shown). In this embodiment ofthe invention, the low speed (RPM), high torque of the turbine, drives ahydrostatic pump (not shown) on a common shaft delivering high pressurehydraulic fluid to the hydrostatic motor driving the generator at highspeed (RPM) for efficient power generation. Multiple turbine pumps mayfeed into a common manifold plumbed to the hydrostatic motor whichdrives the generator. The electric power is delivered from thegenerators via a submarine cable to a shore substation.

In another embodiment of the invention, the equipment cabin 610 may alsocontain a reverse osmosis membrane bank (not shown) whereby the turbines110A-E drive a sea water pump (not shown) delivering high pressureseawater to the reverse osmosis membrane bank for delivery of freshwater by pipeline connection to a shore receiving station.

FIG. 10 illustrates a floating spar/tower frame current turbine system1000 according to another embodiment of the invention. Here, the currentturbine system 1000 comprises turbines 110A-I and towers 120A-I withTRAKYAWS 310, truss 130, wing 140, and a crane 160. The turbines 110A-Iare offset from one another, i.e., odd turbines 110A, 110C, 110E, 110G,and 110I are located closer to the wing 140 than even turbines 110B,110D, 110F, and 110H. In other words, multiple rows of turbines 110 aredisposed at varying depth. As shown in the cross-sectional view AA, thespar/towers 120A-I are also offset from one another. Such aconfiguration increases the electric power generating capacity andnumber of turbines 110 per length of truss 130.

FIG. 11 illustrates a current turbine farm 1100 according to anembodiment of the invention. Here, a plurality of current turbinesystems 100 (or 900, 1000) are placed in a honeycomb pattern as shown(looking down from above onto the ocean surface). Any number of currentturbine systems 100 may be employed. The current turbine systems 100 areconnected to one another via mooring lines 150 and shared anchors (shownby black dots).

Due to the multiple turbines in the embodiments discussed above, itsstructure may require wider quayside access and more vessels to deploy.Furthermore, the multiple interconnected rotors and tower requiresubstantial structural mass to withstand the loads imposed by high wavestates. This has led to the yawing spar tidal turbine design describedbelow where the multiple tower frame structure is eliminated and asingle spar and turbine, yawing against a stationary spreader on thespar, provides simplicity of structure, ease of deployment, resiliencyto extreme sea state loads, and accessibility for operation andmaintenance functions.

FIG. 12 illustrates a yawing spar turbine 1200 according to anembodiment of the invention. Here, the turbine system 1200 comprises afloating spar buoy 1210, a spreader 1220 disposed on the spar 1210, aturbine drivetrain/generating system in a vessel 1230, and a servicedeck or platform 1240. The spar 1210 is cylindrical in shape. In anoptional embodiment of the invention, the diameter of the spar buoy 1210decreases at its bottom end (or keel) 1212 starting at the location ofthe drivetrain/generator turbine vessel 1230. At its lowermost portion,the keel 1212 houses a winch (not shown) that is connected to a verticalmooring line 1214. The winch maintains tension on the mooring line 1214,which is anchored to a seabed. The winch can also adjust the freeboard(depth) of the yawing spar turbine 1200 by taking in or letting out themooring line 1214. Within the keel 1212 are one or more ballast tanks(not shown), the implementation of which is apparent to one of ordinaryskill in the art. The ballast tanks may be used to adjust the buoyancyof the yawing spar turbine 1200 and keep it upright during operation andwith the desired tension on the mooring line 1214. During operation, thespreader 1220 sits below the water line and comprises tips 1222 thatserve as connections points for fore and aft cable yokes 1224, whichtransition to mooring lines 1225 connected to anchors (not shown) on theseabed. The anchors may be gravity anchors and/or suction pile anchors,or other types best suited to the seabed soil composition, theimplementation of which are apparent to one of ordinary skill in theart.

The turbine vessel 1230 comprises an upstream rotor 1232 having two ormore fixed pitch blades or variable pitch blades 1234 (although only twoare shown). The vessel 1230 contains drivetrain and generator (notshown) driven by the rotor 1232. Blade spoilers may be optionallyimplemented to limit the amount of lift created by the blades 1234. Inresponse to a current or tidal flow, the blades 1234 rotate within therotor plane producing rotation torque to drive a generator within theturbine vessel 1230, the implementation of which is apparent to one ofordinary skill in the art. Since currents generally flow faster near thesurface, in slower flows the yawing spar turbine 1200 will operatecloser to the surface, capturing the higher energy close to the surface.In an embodiment of the invention, the yawing, spar turbine 1200passively adjusts its operating depth through rotor drag whereby higherflow speed results in more rotor drag driving spar and turbine deeper bythe downward force vector of the mooring system. This results in theyawing spar turbine 1200 capturing more energy in a tidal flow byadjusting the operating depth to the turbine's rated capacity.

In an embodiment of the invention, the spar 1210 and the turbine vessel1230 are able to rotate (yaw) relative to stationary spreader 1220.Referring to FIG. 13, exemplary yawing of the spar 1210, the turbinevessel 1230, and the rotor blades 1234 are shown. Referring to 13A, therotor blades 1234 and vessel (drivetrain and generator) 1230 areoriented for the rotor to face the flow direction of the current.Referring to 13B, the rotor 1232 and vessel 1230 has rotated forty-five(45) degrees relative to the spreader 1220. Referring to 13C and 13D thespar 1210 and rotor 1232 has rotated a further ninety (90) degrees andone hundred and thirty five (135) degrees respectively relative to thespreader 1220. The spar 1210, vessel 1230 and rotor 1232 rotate (yaw)together three hundred and sixty (360) degrees in either directionrelative to the spreader and mooring lines and, this way, the rotor 1232is always positioned to face the current as the current directionreverses or the current meanders in the same direction.

In an embodiment of the invention, rotation/yawing of the spar 1210along with the turbine 1230 is accomplished through one or more yawmotors (not shown) housed within the spreader 1220. Referring to FIG.14, a ring gear 1216 is fixed on the outside surface of the spar 1210.Actuation of the yaw motors drive gears 1226, which engage the ring gear1216 to rotate the spar buoy 1210 relative to the spreader 1220. Acurrent flow direction sensor (not shown) is included to detect changesin flow direction. Upon detection of a flow direction change by thesensor, the yaw motors are automatically activated in order to adjustthe orientation of the spar 1210 and rotor 1232 relative to the spreader1220, thereby ensuring that at all times, the rotor plane properly facesthe direction of current or tidal flow. For example, if the direction ofthe water flow changes by forty-five (45) degrees, the spar 1210 androtor 1232 are rotated forty-five (45) degrees in the direction of theflow to ensure the rotor plane properly faces the new current flow.

FIG. 15 illustrates the yawing spar turbine 1200 according to anexemplary embodiment of the invention. Referring to the depiction,exemplary dimensions are provided. For example, the height of the spar1210 (from keel 1212 to platform 1240) is twenty-five (25) meters. Thediameter at its maximum girth is two (2) meters. The platform 1240 spansfour (4) meters and sits five (5) meters above the water line. From tipto tip, the spreader 1220 spans eleven (11) meters and the spreader 1220sits three (3) meters below the water line. Also shown are an outerhatch 1250, one or more optional ladders 1252, and one or more optionalinner hatches 1254 to allow servicing of a drivetrain and generatingequipment. Optionally included is a crane 1260 for raising or loweringheavy parts within the spar 1210.

FIG. 16 illustrates deployment of the yawing spar turbine 1200 accordingto an embodiment of the invention. During transportation, the yawingspar platform 1200 is towed in a horizontal position by the winchmooring line 1214 and the spreader yoke cables. Referring to the topdepiction (which is a top view), once at the operating site, the yokes1224 are connected to the forward and aft mooring lines 1225 and thewinch line 1214 is connected to a gravity anchor (not shown). Referringto the bottom depiction (which is a side view), the winch inside thekeel 1212 draws the bottom end of the spar 1210 down and may be assistedby flooding of ballast tanks in the keel 1212 to reach a verticalposition (shown in shading). The winch is then locked to retain adesired operating depth, or can actively control operating depth inareas of wide tide level range.

The invention has been described herein using specific embodiments forthe purposes of illustration only. It will be readily apparent to one ofordinary skill in the art, however, that the principles of the inventioncan be embodied in other ways. Therefore, the invention should not beregarded as being limited in scope to the specific embodiments disclosedherein, but instead as being fully commensurate in scope with thefollowing claims.

I claim:
 1. A current or tidal turbine comprising: a floating spar buoy,the floating spar buoy including a keel at a bottom end; a spreaderdisposed on the floating spar buoy, wherein the spreader comprises outerend connection points for attaching one or more mooring lines connectedto one or more anchors; and a turbine with a drivetrain and generatordisposed on the floating spar buoy for converting current or tidal flowinto electricity.
 2. The current or tidal turbine of claim 1, furthercomprising a rotor or a plurality of rotors operating within a rotorplane and a yaw motor in the spreader to react against the floating sparbuoy and turbine, to effect yawing about a vertical axis so that therotor plane faces a current or tidal flow, wherein the spreader isstationary.
 3. The current or tidal turbine of claim 2, furthercomprising a current or tidal flow direction sensor that activates theyaw motor in response to a change in current or tidal flow direction. 4.The current or tidal turbine of claim 2, wherein the keel extends to abottom sweep of the rotor plane.
 5. The current or tidal turbine ofclaim 1, wherein the keel comprises a winch attached to a verticalmooring line.
 6. The current or tidal turbine of claim 5, wherein thekeel includes a ballast tank.
 7. The current or tidal turbine of claim6, wherein the current or tidal turbine floats in a horizontal planeduring towing to an operating site.
 8. The current or tidal turbine ofclaim 7, wherein flooding of the ballast tank and activation of thewinch draws the keel down below a waterline and rotates the floatingspar into a vertical position.
 9. The current or tidal turbine of claim5, wherein an operating depth of the current or tidal turbine isadjusted through the winch, ballast in the floating spar buoy, andcurrent drag on the rotor.
 10. The current or tidal turbine of claim 1,wherein the floating spar buoy includes a hatch at a top end andinternal ladders to permit serviceman access to a drivetrain of theturbine.
 11. The current or tidal turbine of claim 1, wherein thefloating spar buoy and turbine rotate (yaw) relative to the spreader toface a current flow.
 12. A current or tidal turbine comprising: acylindrical floating spar, a turbine drivetrain attached to thecylindrical floating spar, the turbine drivetrain comprising a mainshaft on which a rotor is mounted, a flow direction sensor for sensing adirection of water flow across the cylindrical floating spar, a spreaderabove the turbine, and a yaw motor to position the rotor in the senseddirection of water flow.
 13. The current or tidal turbine of claim 12,wherein in operation of the turbine drivetrain, the cylindrical floatingspar floats vertically with its top above a water line and its bottombelow the water line, with a center of gravity of the current or tidalturbine located below its center of buoyancy.
 14. The current or tidalturbine of claim 12, wherein the spreader comprises lateral ends fixingfore and aft cable yokes to restrain the spreader in a fixed positionabout a vertical axis.
 15. The current or tidal turbine of claim 14,wherein the fore and aft cable yokes fix a position of the spreader andattach to mooring lines connected to anchors on a seabed.
 16. Thecurrent or tidal turbine of claim 12, further comprising a winch at abottom end of the spar, the winch attached to a mooring line extendingto an anchor on a seabed.
 17. The current or tidal turbine of claim 12,wherein the spreader is fixed in position and houses the yaw motor andfurther comprising driving gears engaging a ring gear fixed to an outerperimeter of the spar.
 18. The current or tidal turbine of claim 17,wherein the flow direction sensor activates the yaw motor in thespreader to yaw the cylindrical floating spar and turbine drivetrain toface the water flow.
 19. The current or tidal turbine of claim 12,wherein the turbine comprises variable pitch blades.
 20. The current ortidal turbine of claim 12, wherein the turbine is serviced by entranceof repair personnel through a hatch on the spar and a decent on laddersinternal to the spar.